Tag Archives: Ernie Pyle World War II Museum

NORMANDY BEACHHEAD, June 17, 1944 — In the preceding column we told about the D-day wreckage among our machines of war that were expended in taking one of the Normandy beaches.But there is another and more human litter. It extends in a thin little line, just like a high-water mark, for miles along the beach. This is the strewn personal gear, gear that will never be needed again, of those who fought and died to give us our entrance into Europe.

NORMANDY BEACHHEAD, June 16, 1944 — I took a walk along the historic coast of Normandy in the country of France.It was a lovely day for strolling along the seashore. Men were sleeping on the sand, some of them sleeping forever.

In honor of those who fought and gave their lives in one of World War II’s most notorious battles, the Invasion of Normandy, four columns written by Ernie Pyle will be shared each week leading up to the 75th anniversary of D-Day on June 6. This is the first of the four columns.

AT THE FRONT LINES IN ITALY, January 10, 1944 — The son of a tenant farming parents in west-central Indiana, Ernie Pyle became history’s greatest war correspondent. When Pyle was killed by a Japanese machine gun bullet on the tiny Pacific island of Ie Shima in 1945, his columns were being delivered to more than 14 million homes according to his New York Times obituary.